What Did You Do?
by polgara-5
Summary: Willow does a spell to help in the fight against the first. The problem? Willow does a spell.... Includes crossover with HP, LOTR, and David Eddings
1. Prologue

We can all blame Jinni for the fact that I have started another story. But she issued a challenge and this damn thing popped in my head.

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The challenge:

Last ____ Alive  
A group of characters (some crossover, some just pure BtVS/AtS) find  
themselves on a planet/in a dimension where they are the only ones. There is  
food, water, a suitable atmosphere - but everything else is primitive.  
No way home.  
Let time explore how they survive, learn to cope, etc.  
Do they get along or is it hard going? Did any of the 'pure characters' know  
the 'crossover characters' before this happened? Or is it just fate bringing  
a group of people together?  
No more than 12 characters total. At least 2 characters should get together  
in a believable way.

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Title: What Did You Do?

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By: Polgara (melindoranightsilver@hotmail.com)

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Rating: PG (for now, may change later

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Summary: Willow does a spell to help in the fight against the first. The problem? Willow did a spell.....

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Disclaimer: Brace yourself, there are quite a few... I don't own BtVS that's Joss Whedon, J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, whoever holds Tolkien's rights owns LOTR, and David and Leigh Eddings own the rest that you'll see.

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Spoilers: Season Seven of Buffy (somewhere towards the end), GOF for HP (OOP never happened!), somewhere during the books for LOTR, the middle of The Tamuli for Sparhawk and Flute, and somewhere in the middle of the Mallorean for Garion and Belgarath.

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Note: This includes characters not normally seen in these crossovers. If you still wish to read this story and you don't know the characters just email me and I'll tell you what you need to know. But I suggest you buy anything by David Eddings just because they are fabulous books to read......

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Note 2: This wasn't beta'd cause I'm not sure how well this will be received. I am planning on continuing, it will just be a slow process.

Prologue

"Willow, are you sure that this spell is safe?" Buffy asked nervously as she watched the wicca arrange the candles in a specific order in a circle on the floor.

"Yes, Buffy. Besides, I'm not sure we have much of a choice. We're going to need all the help we can get if we want to win this one," the redhead answered as she placed the last candle.

"But this is a risky spell..." Buffy began.

"I'll be ok," Willow assured her as she sat inside the circle of lit candles.

"It's not you we worry about," Dawn muttered under her breath.

"You, ah, might want to stand back and have a weapon handy in case our guests attack first and ask questions later."  
"Gotcha." Buffy opened her weapons chest and pulled out two swords. She handed one to Dawn as she stood next to her on the other side of the room.

"Well, here it goes," Willow said with a nervous laugh. She closed her eyes to steady herself. When she opened them they were a black void and a wind began to whip around the Summers' living room. A light began to build as Willow performed the spell.

"Let the chosen warriors of the light cross and meet!"

The light flashed effectively blinding them. When the girls could see again they had to blink their eyes several times to believe what they saw.

"I don't think we're in Kansas anymore," Dawn whispered as she looked around the beach to the lush rainforest behind them.

**********

The great Pandion knight, Sparhawk, reigned in Faran, his horse, sharply. His calculating eyes took in the scene before him. "This isn't Atan."

"Of course it's not, Sparhawk," the small girl riding in front of him said with a roll of her eyes. "I can plainly see that."

"Then where, Oh-Divine One, are we?"

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know? You're a goddess, Flute. You're supposed to know everything."  
"How many times do I have to tell you, I don't know everything? You're the one in control of Bhelliom, so what did you do?"  
The knight sighed. "I told it to take us to Atan."  
"Did your mind wander again?"

"No, it didn't." A noise behind them caught his attention. "There are some people over there, maybe they'll know where we are."

********

"Garion! What did you do?" An old man in shabby clothes bellowed as he and the young man with him made their way through the forest toward a clearing.

"I swear, grandfather, it wasn't me!" The sandy haired young man answered.

"Torak's Teeth! I didn't do it and your Aunt Pol has better control than you do. And since it's the two of us here then that leaves you."  
"I wouldn't know where to start to try something like this," Garion answered as they broke through the edge of the forest to reveal a beach. "Maybe they know something," he suggested, pointing to a group gathered on the beach.

*********

"Potter, I knew having you as a potions partner would mean trouble," a teenager with white-blond hair grumbled. "I know you're responsible for this."

"Malfoy, how could a potion cause this?" A raven haired young man asked sourly.

"Sure. So it wasn't a coincidence that when the potion exploded that we ended up here?"

"It was, Malfoy," a young woman with them said. "After all, how could the exploded potion bring me here? I was on the other side of the room."

"That's it, Granger. Defend your little boyfriend."  
"He's not my boyfriend!"

"Where's he going?" Malfoy asked, ignoring her outburst.

She looked to see the other member of their party walking away.

"To see who those people are," he answered as he continued on his way.

***********

"Estel, these trees don't talk, and I have never seen their like before," whispered a tall, slender man with long blond hair.

"I am afraid that that flash of light has transported us somewhere, but where I have no idea," a scruffy looking man said. His keen eyes surveyed their surroundings.

"I hear voices from that direction, perhaps they may shed some light on our predicament."

***********

Buffy warily eyed the people approaching them. Most of them were armed and dressed in odd clothing. They were all men except for one teenage girl and a young girl of about six. None of them seemed to be looking for a fight, but they all looked confused.

"Willow, what did you do?" The slayer whispered.


	2. Introductions

Well I guess this one is worth continuing and has a big enough audience if the reviews are any indication. I'm telling you now though, that it make take a while for me to finish this. Plus, I don't put up author notes just for the heck of it, they usually containing important information regarding the story so please read them before asking me silly questions.

A/N: I know that some of you are familiar with David Eddings and others aren't. I have received emails asking for more info and I really don't mind giving it out. So please feel free to email me with questions, melindoranightsilver@hotmail.com 

A/N2: This chapter has everybody introducing themselves so some of your questions might be answered as to who these people are.

Special thanks to my beta PuNKeCoWGiRL for agreeing to beta this even though she isn't familiar with all of my characters.

Review Responses:

Felicia Neko, Tassos, Pandoras Box1, Sweet-Steffie, Kenra, A Watcher, dancetdplc, thank you guys so much for your reviews!

Lirael, I happen to be a huge David Eddings fan. I've never seen a crossover with Buffy before either, but I felt this challenge gave me the perfect opportunity to try one. I've always worried about doing one cause I wasn't sure how much of the Buffy audience had read any of his stuff. Hopefully I can get some of them to read his books and do more crossovers in the future.

Rach, only the characters mentioned in the previous chapter will be in this story. The challenge Jinni issued limited me to at most twelve characters and I'm kind of pushing the limit. I do have other possible crossovers to write in the future if I have time.

luana, thanks for mentioning the little Sparhawk and Flute interaction. I'm actually in the middle of rereading The Tamuli so I have their idiosyncrasies firmly in place. I might be a little sketchy with Garion and Belgarath so I may have to pick those books up again... Not like I mind.

Lisette, I'm glad I caught your interest. Hopefully you'll start to understand some of the characters after this chapter.

bavite, I know, this combination should be fun. The only way to make it better was if I could have brought in Kalten, Talen, Lelldorin, and Silk. Couldn't you just see the havoc they could create?

I just want you guys to know how much your reviews mean. I'm glad to know that I'm not the only huge David Eddings fan out there.

Chapter One

Introductions

As the nine other people approached the three present members of the scooby gang, Buffy had a horrible fear. "Willow, what if we all don't speak the same language?"

"I could do a translation spell."

"No!" Dawn cried.

"She's right," Buffy agreed. "Your first spell got us into this, we don't need anymore problems."

Willow pouted slightly but said no more.

"Do you think this is everybody?" Dawn asked.

"I hope so," Buffy whispered as they got into hearing range.

Buffy and Dawn kept their swords in their hands, but let them hang low in a non-aggressive posture. The twelve people formed a rough circle comprise of clumps of people. They all looked at each other warily.

Patience not really being one of Buffy's strong points, she decided to be the one to speak. "Umm, let's start with if you can understand me, raise your hand." She looked visibly relieved when everyone raised a hand. "Great," she said with a smile.

"See, didn't need that spell after all," Dawn murmured to Willow.

"Next question. Raise your hand if you have no idea how you got here." Once again everyone's hand went into the air. "Ok. I think we, my friends and I, can explain what happened."

"What did you do, neighbor?" A big man in black armor asked.

"I'm getting to that, but I think some introductions might be helpful." Several of them nodded their heads. Knowing she'd have to explain who she was when they explained what happened, she plunged forward. "I'm Buffy Summers and I'm from Sunnydale, California. I also happen to be the chosen one, which means I'm the vampire slayer. I defend the world from all sorts of evil nasties."

"My lady, I find it hard to believe that someone of your stature could fight evil," a tall man with long blond hair said.

Buffy leaned towards Willow. "Stature?" She whispered.

"It means height, build, size. He means you don't look intimidating."

"Well why didn't he just say so?" Buffy whispered with a roll of her eyes. Speaking loud enough so everyone could hear, she said, "Just trust me for the moment." She turned and looked expectantly at Dawn.

"Oh! My turn. My name is Dawn, I'm Buffy's sister. I help her fight... And that's about it."

"I'm Willow Rosenberg and I help too. I practice wicca, which means I'm a witch."

The slayer watched for the other's reactions. They didn't seem to be surprised by the mention of magic, which would make the explanation of what happened much easier.

"My name is Sparhawk," the large man in armor said. He had a crooked nose that had obviously been broken some time in the past. "The girl's name is Flute." The girl had long black hair and a simple white dress. Her feet were bare and had grass stains on them. She gave them a little trill on her pipes in way of greeting. "I suggest you steer clear of my horse, Faran. He's a little foul tempered." The large roan snorted derisively at him.

"I'm a Pandion knight from Elenia and I'm also the Queen's Champion, her husband, and the Interim Preceptor of my order."

A sinking feeling appeared in Buffy's stomach.

"Guess we're next," the only other girl replied. She had long brown hair and had a look of sharp intelligence about her. "I'm Hermione Granger and I'm from London, England. I'm also a witch." She nudged the boy next to her with her elbow. "Be polite," she whispered tersely.

"Don't tell me what to do, mudblood."

"Take that back, Malfoy," the other boy with them said.

"No, Potter, I won't. Don't you ever get tired of defending your girlfriend?"

"We're not dating!" The two in question protested.

"Right," he said with a knowing smirk. "You keep on telling yourselves that."

"Excuse us," Buffy said, gesturing with her sword. "Can we please finish the intros so we can explain what happened and hopefully go home?"  
The boy with the white blond hair smirked at her.

"Is it me," Dawn asked, "or does he remind you of Spike?" Willow just nodded her head.

"My name's not Spike, it's Draco Malfoy. I'm also a wizard and from England."

"I'm Harry Potter. The three of us are in our sixth year at Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Everyone turned to look at the oldest of the group. While his hair and closely cropped beard were a silvery gray, he seemed to be quite fit. His clothes, however, were mismatched and stained. A piece of rope was wrapped around his simple tunic like a belt. "The name is Belgarath and I'm a storyteller. I don't really remember the village I'm from."

"It's because you're older than the hills," the sandy haired man next to him said.

"You should treat your elders with respect," Hermione told him reprovingly.

"If you only knew how close to the truth that is," the man muttered before introducing himself. "My name is Garion and I'm the current Rivan King. The old man just happens to be my grandfather."

Buffy looked Garion over. He was tall and nicely built, but only seemed to be her age. "Aren't you a little young to be a king?"

Garion shrugged his shoulders. "I was crowned when I was sixteen and I'm twenty-two now."

"It's not that unusual," Sparhawk said. "Queen Ehlana was crowned at eighteen."  
"Doesn't mean either of them were ready," Buffy countered.

"I wasn't," Garion answered truthfully. "But luckily I had some help in my early years on the throne."

"Maybe we should let the last two speak," Willow said before they could get farther along on the tangent.

A man with should length dark hair nodded his head in way of greeting. "My name is Strider and I'm a ranger from the north. My friend is Legolas from the woodland realm."

The slayer turned to Willow. "I don't think we're in our dimension anymore, and neither are they. What did you do?"

"Are you the ones who brought us here?" Belgarath asked.

Willow laughed nervously. "Kinda."

"Let me explain," Buffy said, heading off any outbursts. Then she started a long explanation about their world.

The redhead couldn't help it. Buffy had been making so many speeches lately that she just tuned her best friend out until she could tell she was nearing the end. All the important info always came there.

She surveyed the nine other people. During the introductions it seemed as if they were all deliberately hiding something about themselves. She relaxed her mind so she could read everybody's auras. Tara had always been able to do it easily and yet Willow had to work at it.

Once she found the right state of mind she looked at the newcomers again. The three students had an obvious aura of magic, but the two boys had flickers of dark magic in theirs. They were random enough to indicate that they had been touched by dark magic, but never used it.

Strider's shone brightly but had a sense of a huge destiny and burden. Legolas' indicated that he was far older than he looked and Belgarath's said that he was older still. Garion's had a strange blue corona and it seemed to be concealing something. She concentrated harder and nearly gasped when she saw a large sword strapped to his back materialize.

She lifted her gaze to Sparhawk and took a step back - he had no aura. She sent out a light tendril of magic and confirmed that he was alive, he just didn't have an aura. Willow sucked in her breath and held it as she regarded Flute. The young girl was luminescent with pure power.

"Buffy," Willow whispered. When the slayer continued talking, Willow tried again, only louder. "Buffy."

"What, Willow?"

"These people aren't exactly who they say they are."

The petite blonde's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Legolas, Belgarath, and Strider are older than they look, Harry and Draco have been touched by dark magic, Garion in concealing a huge sword, Strider has a huge honkin' destiny, Sparhawk has no aura, and Flute is pure power."

They all stared at Willow in shock.

"Let's start with Garion," Buffy said. "After all, he's the one hiding a weapon."

Garion sighed softly and said, "Why me?" He turned his neck slightly and said, "You can stop concealing yourself."  
Buffy gasped at how large the sword was. It was over four feet long and a glowing blue stone sat on the pommel.

"What is that?" Dawn asked.

The young king took the sword off his back and set it on the ground. He then whispered something and the orb came off. "This is the Orb of Aldur."

"Who?"

"Aldur is a god. He was the first to protect it until his brother Torak stole it. My ancestor, Riva Iron-Grip, went on a mission with my grandfather to retrieve it. Since then it will only submit to the touch of the Rivan line. Several hundred years ago my family had to go into hiding with only my grandfather and Aunt Pol to protect them. A prophecy was set into motion when I was about fourteen or so and I was the Child of Light. That's roughly how I ended up as king."

"Why did you set your sword on the ground?" Sparhawk asked.

"It's too heavy for me to lift without the Orb. Actually, no one else can lift it, but me."

"Belgarath, how old are you?" Willow asked.

"Over seven thousand years old," the old man replied with a wolfish grin.

"How is that possible?"

"I'm a wizard, of sorts. I don't exactly do magic, but that's the easiest way to describe it. Garion is one too."  
"But why does he call you grandfather?" Dawn asked.

"My daughter, Beldaran, was Riva's wife."

Buffy turned to Strider and Legolas. "What about you two?"

Strider sighed. "I'm eighty-seven. I have a small amount of elven blood in me that grants me long life. To the elves..."

"House elves?" Hermione asked intently.

"No, regular elves. To them I am known as Estel, which means hope. To my people I'm Aragorn son of Arathorn, the future king of Gondor. Like Garion, my family has been in hiding to protect us."  
Legolas spoke next. "My father is Thranduil, king of Mirkwood. I'm an elf..."

"You don't look like any elf that I've seen," Draco said.

"They must be different from where you come from," Legolas said simply. "I am one of the first born, granted with an immortal life and I'm nearly three thousand years old. I'm currently on a quest with Estel and others that will hopefully rid out land of an ancient evil and place him on the throne."

Buffy looked at Harry and Draco. "Anything you two want to share?"

Harry shrugged. "I'm wanted by an evil wizard named Voldemort." Hermione and Draco shuddered slightly. "He tried to kill me when I was a baby with the killing curse. I'm the only one who has ever survived the curse.

"Making you the bloody savior of our world."  
"It's not like I want to be, Malfoy."

"Whatever, Potter."  
"At least I'm not a filthy death eater!" Harry yelled.

"I didn't want to take the mark! My father made me!" Draco yelled back.

"What mark?" Buffy asked, moving to stand between them to help prevent a fight.

"Voldemort's followers are called death eaters. You can easily identify them cause they all wear the dark mark," Harry spat.

"My father gave me a choice," Draco said darkly. "The mark or death by his own hand."

"Ok. Obviously an issue you need to sort out later, but not now," Buffy said. "Willow, is Draco evil?"

"No. What I saw must have been caused by the mark. His heart is pure."

"Fine. You two can settle this later. Right now we have other problems." She turned to Sparhawk. "Care to enlighten us oh-he-without-an-aura?"  
"I'm also known as Anakha, the man without destiny. I am Bhelliom's creature, designed to help him."

"Bhelliom?"

"A sapphire gem that holds great power. It has a mind and conscious of its own."  
"And what about the girl of pure power?"

"I'm a goddess," the girl said with an impish grin. "My name is Aphrael actually"  
"And you're with him why?"

"To keep an eye on him. You wouldn't believe how much trouble he can get into on his own."  
"But you're only about six," Dawn pointed out.

"I only look six. I'm actually very, very old. I just like this form."

"Since we're all being so truthful, I guess I should tell you what I left out," Dawn said. "I'm not as old as I look. I was once the key and was only transformed into this body a couple of years ago."  
"The key?" Harry asked.

Flute walked up to Dawn in wonder. "The key to dimensions?" At Dawn's nod, Flute said in slight wonder, "My family thought you were just a myth."

"What do you mean a key to dimensions?" Aragorn asked.

"My blood opens portals between different worlds and dimensions."  
"Is _that _how we got here?" Belgarath asked sourly.


	3. Restrictions

Here's the next chapter for your reading enjoyment. At least, I hope so.

Pandoras Box1, fairysk8r, Felicia Neko, A Watcher, thank you guys so much for your reviews! They really mean a lot to me.

Chapter Two

Restrictions

"Do you think we're crazy?" Buffy asked. "Using the key? That would be signing everybody's death sentence."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked curiously.

"The key's power can't exactly be controlled," Willow said. "If we activated the key it would break down the dimensional barriers between all the worlds. Literally every dimension would fall upon itself and unleash hell everywhere."

"Not to mention it requires me dying," Dawn said. "See, still alive so no key usage."  
"Then, neighbor, how _did _we get here?" Sparhawk asked as he shifted slightly, causing his black armor to creak.

"I kinda did this spell, and I honestly didn't think it would bring us here. I had a _totally_ different idea of what it was suppose to do. It wasn't suppose to bring all of you people, it was suppose to do something else entirely - at least I think it was."

Buffy smirked at Dawn. "Got to love the Willow babble."

"You _think_ it was suppose to do something different?" Belgarath sputtered. "What are you? Some sort of amateur?"

Willow's eyes narrowed and her pitch dropped. "I am not and amateur, old man."  
"Uh oh," Dawn said softly.

"Only an amateur would cast a spell not fully sure of what it would do."

The redhead's eyes turned black. "Listen here, mister. I'll have you know that I had researched this spell very carefully," she said as she began walking menacingly towards him.

Buffy reached out and grabbed her friend's arm, but Willow easily shook her off.

"I'm not going to hurt him," Willow said coldly.

"Then you really are an amateur if you think you could hurt me," Belgarath said.

"Oh, shouldn't have said that," Dawn whispered as a wind picked up around Willow and her hair turned black.

Then just as suddenly the wind died and she slumped to the ground. The black bled out of her hair, returning it to its original color.

"What the hell just happened?" Draco yelled. "That was dark magic!"

"Well you would know seeing as how you use it," Harry said darkly.

"I have never used dark magic, Potter. And I swear, if you insinuate that one more time I'll.."

"You'll what?" Harry asked, standing nose to nose with his rival. "Hex me into oblivion?"  
"No, I'll just punch you."  
"Could you two _please_ deal with your trauma later?" Dawn asked from the ground where she sat with Buffy and Willow.

"But the lad has a point," Aragorn said. "What just happened?"

Buffy sighed. "Last year Willow was delving into her magicks too quickly and too deeply, and she lost control. Then she was getting better, but her girlfriend, Tara, was killed right in front of her and she completely lost it. The dark magic took control and she killed the man who shot Tara."

"What wasn't she arrested?" Hermione asked.

"The police would never have been able to stop her. I couldn't even stop her, she was too powerful. She even went so far as to try and end our world."

They all gasped.

"I take it she didn't succeed," Belgarath said.

"She almost did, but a friend of ours was able to talk her down. Since then she was taken to a coven of witches and taught how to control her magic, but it still gets away from her at times."  
"Why didn't she stop using magic entirely?" Garion asked.

"She tried, but it's impossible," Dawn said softly as she brushed Willow's hair off her forehead. "The magic is a part of her. To deny her magic is to deny a piece of herself. And in the end it would only make her worse."  
"Is she ok?" Hermione asked as she approached the three women on the ground.

"I think so," Buffy answered. "I've just never seen her get drained that quickly before. It might have something to do with the dimension we're in."  
"Can you explain what happened?" Belgarath asked.

"I'll try, but I'm not familiar with how magic works, I just know it does," Buffy said. "Remember how I said we're fighting this unstoppable evil? We thought if we pulled all the warriors for the light in our world together that maybe all of us could beat it. We honestly didn't think that it would pull us and others into another dimension. We're really sorry about this. But magic does have a tendency to go wonky on the hellmouth."  
"Oh, that hurts," Willow whimpered as she opened her eyes. "I didn't hurt anybody, did I?" She asked as she looked up at Buffy.

"No, we're all still in one piece," the slayer said with a smile. "See, no injuries."  
Willow looked at Belgarath. "I'm sorry," she said with a grimace. "My emotions get away from me sometimes." The old man just nodded his head.

"What happened, thought?" Buffy asked. "I've never seen your powers drained like that before."  
"I don't know," Willow said. "I couldn't sustain my powers. It was like something was siphoning them off."

"What do you mean?"

"Something was keeping my power level in check." She looked around at the others. "Can any of you use your powers? Try something simple first, and then something complicated."

Hermione shrugged and pulled out her wand.

"I don't think so, mudblood. You should probably let a pureblood try first."

She just glared at Draco and said, "Wingardium Leviosa!" The blond lifted into the air. "Seems to be working fine for me," she said smugly as she unceremoniously dropped him to the ground. "Harry, why don't you try your Patronus."

Harry pulled out his wand and said, "Expecto Patronum!" But only a silvery wisp came out of the tip of his wand.

"Ha! See, Potter. I knew you couldn't do that spell."  
The raven-haired boy just rolled his eyes. "Malfoy, I've done that spell a hundred times and I'm not arguing with you about this again. I felt the power build and release, but something blocked the spell."  
Willow looked over at Garion and Belgarath.

"I'll go first," Garion said. And the next thing they knew, a wolf was standing in his place. Then just as suddenly, Garion was back.

"That was amazing," Willow said with wide eyes.

"Well, that went smoothly," Garion said before turning to look at the old man. "Grandpa?"

Belgarath turned around and looked towards the forest. Willow didn't quite hear what he said but all that happened was a slight fizzle in his hand. "I can't use a destructive power."  
"We're next," Aphrael said, looking up at Sparhawk.

Sparhawk began chanting in a strange language and weaving his hands in a specific pattern. He stopped and shrugged. "The summoning spell works."  
"What did you summon," Buffy asked, looking around.

"Aphrael's presence in my mind. It's a way for knights to communicate across great distances."

The small goddess scrunched up her face as she tried to figure out a complicated spell for herself to do. She looked up and said sweetly, "Can you all please turn around and not watch."  
They all looked at her strangely.

"I have to turn back into my original form to do this, and it's rather embarrassing. So please just turn around."  
Sparhawk looked meaningful al them all. "She gets a little sensitive about it. It's best if we just turn around and let her be."  
Everyone shrugged and did as they were asked. They could feel something shimmering behind them.

"Alright, you can turn around," she said sourly after a moment.

"What did you try to do?" Hermione asked.

"I tried to split into two people, I couldn't."  
"You can do that?" Dawn asked.

"Well, I am a goddess," the little girl said smugly.

Willow looked over at Aragorn and Legolas.

"While magic exists in our world, we can't perform it," Aragorn said.

"This is a problem," Willow said as she rubbed her temples in effort to lessen her headache.

"What is?" Buffy asked.

"If we can't do the more complicated spells, then I can't get us back. We're stuck here."


	4. Trouble's Brewin'

Hello all! I've got another chappie all ready for your enjoyment.

I just want to say that I'm tickled with the number of reviews I have received for this. Thank you guys so much!

Tassos, Saioko, fairysk8r, harmoni9, Calex, SilverKnight7, Felicia Neko, Tituba, Steve-O, whatupman, thank you guys for all of your reviews!

dancetdplc, thanks for pointing out my typo. Both me and my beta missed it. I'm glad you enjoyed The Elenium. I personally prefer the Sparhawk books to the others, although I do love both series. And thanks for the tip on another set of books to read, I'm always looking for more!

Polgara-Nightwings, honestly, you make me blush. Thank you so much for all of the compliments.

Pandoras Box1, I don't think Willow could beat Belgarath when it came down to it. Granted she has a lot of power, but with wicca it's kind of borrowed. Not to mention, he has several thousand years of experience under his belt. The most powerful of the group is Flute, for obvious reasons.

Whiffet, I know, the group will be a handful, but the challenge didn't say they had to get along. And problems will arise from the fact that all of them are used to being in charge. And this group is actually smaller than my main story that I work on that contains all of the Buffy characters, all of Harry Potter, and all of Lord of the Rings. What can I say, I'm ambitious at times.

NicolaAryon, the challenge specifically limited me to twelve people and these people have very specific reasons for being there. And I'm not explaining the problems with the magic just yet, cause there's a reason for that too. You'll have to wait until the characters discover it for themselves.

Bob, this happens somewhere in the middle of The Shining Ones, it's after Sparhawk has retrieved the Bhelliom and his trip to Delphaeus. This also takes place in The Mallorean, you'll see better when you read this chapter, Garion mentions several things. I have specific reasons why the orb is limited and why the Bhelliom will be limited (If you've noticed, Sparhawk hasn't revealed to the others that he has it yet). I haven't decided about the sword thing yet, I'm rereading The Mallorean for like the twentieth time to refresh my memory about a few things. And I totally agree about the levitation spell being useful in a fight, they just won't have to worry about it... too much.

Note: The first book to read for Garion and Belgarath is Pawn of Prophecy, the book will list the order of the rest. The first one to read for Sparhawk and Flute (Aphrael) is The Diamond Throne.

Chapter Three

Trouble's Brewin'

"What do you mean 'we're stuck here'?" Garion cried. "I have to get back and rescue my son! I don't have time for this!"

"Garion," Belgarath began.

"Ce'Nedra is probably tearing the camp apart as we speak! I don't think she can handle losing both me and Geran!"

"Garion," Belgarath said, only louder this time.

"Not to mention I have a kingdom to run and another prophecy. I need to get back to my wife and son!"

"Belgarion!" The old man thundered, finally gaining his grandson's attention. "Panicking is not going to help!"

"Why does this always happen to me?" Garion whined slightly.

"I thought your Aunt Pol broke you of that habit."  
Garion just glared at him.

"Your son?" Buffy asked.

"Yes. My son, Geran was kidnapped several months ago. We've been trying to get him back, but there's a prophecy involved..."  
"Oh that's fun," Buffy said with a grimace.

Belgarath looked at her in surprise. "You've had experience with prophecies?"  
"You're talking to Miss Prophecy Girl. I've found they aren't very accurate."  
Now Harry looked interested. "You know how to get around them?"

"I wouldn't say get around them, but let's say that the prophecy isn't the end all, be all of existence," Buffy said evasively.

"I hate to interrupt," Sparhawk said. "But Garion isn't the only one who has something important to do back home. I'm in the middle of preventing a god from taking over."  
"We're in the middle of an important quest that will save our world," Aragorn said. 

"And we were in the process of rescuing two of our friends when we were brought here," Legolas added before turning his gaze back to the ocean.

"I'm the only one who can kill Voldemort," Harry said quietly.

Buffy exploded. "All right! I've got it! We all have important things to do back home! I'm sorry, but we really didn't mean for this to happen. So can we get passed that and on to _how_ we're going to get out of here!" 

"Perhaps we should postpone that conversation," Legolas said.

"What's wrong?" Dawn asked, hearing the urgency in his voice.

"There is a storm fast approaching," the elf said, pointing to the dark clouds forming out over the water.

"We need to find shelter, fast," Sparhawk said.

Draco pulled out his wand. "I'll take care of it."

"No!" Buffy said. "No magic! There's something here affecting it and we don't know why or how. So no magic until we figure it out."  
"You're not my boss!" Draco said with a sneer.

"She has a point, Malfoy," Hermione said with a roll of her eyes.

"Shut up, you stupid..."  
"That's enough," Sparhawk roared. "We're wasting time arguing. We can discuss this magic problem later. The storm is a more immediate problem."

"I think I can find a cave," Garion said.  
"How?" Willow asked.

A strange look appeared on Garion's face. "The orb is tugging. I think it can feel a place."  
"It can? How?" Willow asked, crossing to him to have a closer look at the orb. She was careful not to touch it.

Garion smiled slightly. "It has an investment in my family line and it has some power of its own."  
"Sounds good to me, let's go," Buffy said, deciding that anything could be better than standing there waiting for the rain.

The motley group followed Garion as he led them into the forest. He went confidently in his chosen direction and soon led them to a fairly large cave that had a small freshwater stream running through it.

"Ok. I don't do a lot of camping, but this seems to be an awful lot like a coincidence," Dawn said, looking suspiciously around the cave.

"It does, doesn't it?" Harry agreed.

"I don't think it's dangerous, otherwise the orb wouldn't have led me here," Garion said defensively.

"It'll do for now. But first we need to make some provisions before the storm arrives," Sparhawk said, taking charge. He looked at the group and took stock of their possessions. "We need to gather wood and food in case we get stuck here."  
"Legolas and I can gather food," Aragorn said before the two of them silently left the cave.

"I can find firewood," Hermione said as she started out.

"I'll help," Garion offered as he left with her.

"The rest of us can explore how deep the cave goes," Sparhawk said. He turned to Flute. "Will you stay here with Faran?"

She rolled her eyes. "I can, but don't you think someone should stay here with me since I'm not suppose to use magic?"

He turned back to the others. "She has a point. At the moment she's just a little girl."  
"I'm standing right here, Sparhawk," she said crossly. "Just for that, I want Draco to stay here with me."  
"Me?!"

"Yes, you," the girl said sweetly. She turned back to Sparhawk. "You can go explore now that I have a bodyguard."

"Thanks, divine one," Sparhawk said dryly.

The rest headed into the cave. Draco and Flute could hear Dawn's voice float back, "She's kind of bossy, isn't she?"  
Draco let out a frustrated sigh and moved to stand just inside the opening of the cave. He stared out and watched the clouds approach. As usual, he was stuck with a crap job - babysitting. It just wasn't fair. He was barely aware that he had picked the girl up and was holding her in his arms.

***********

"You didn't have to help, your majesty," Hermione said as she and Garion searched for firewood.

"Please, just call me Garion," he said with a smile. "I don't mind helping. It's usually my job when we travel anyways."

"But you're the king," she said as she picked up several sticks and placed them in his arms.

"I wasn't always one. I grew up as a scullery boy on a farm until we started on the quest for the orb." He chuckled lightly at her startled expression. "It wasn't that bad. I had my Aunt Pol and Durnik. I sort of miss it, actually. Life was much easier then. But if I had stayed there I would have never met Ce'Nedra. So gathering firewood is rather comforting in a strange way."  
Hermione nodded in understanding. "My life was pretty simple until I made friends with Harry and Ron. Trouble follows Harry everywhere." She jumped at a crack of thunder.

"Are you ok?" He worriedly asked.

"Yes. I'm just afraid of storms."  
"Then why did you volunteer to go into one to gather firewood?"  
She smiled sheepishly. "Because someone needed to do it and I wanted to make sure I pulled my weight with the work. The fact that I'm a Gryffindor might also have something to do with it."  
"A Gryffindor? Is that a family name?"  
"No. The students at Hogwarts are divided into houses by their personality traits. Gryffindors are known for their bravery and courage," she explained.

Garion laughed. "And Aunt Pol complains about my illogical reasons for doing things. If I went to your school, I probably would have been in Gryffindor."

***********

Draco barely noticed that Legolas and Aragorn had returned with food. He continued holding Flute and staring into the forest as the man and the elf skinned the animal they had killed. The only reason why the return of the cave explorers caught his attention was because Sparhawk was carrying an unconscious Harry.

"What happened?" Aragorn asked as he moved to examine the boy.

"There was a weak spot in the floor and it crumbled beneath him," Belgarath explained. "Luckily Buffy caught him before he fell to the bottom, but he did hit his head."  
"Will he be all right?" Dawn asked, hovering over him.

Draco rolled his eyes. Trust boy wonder to impress girls who didn't really know about his exalted status. He sighed as he rested his cheek on top of the girl's head. Just once he wished girls would look at him like a hero.

A flash of lightening followed by a loud crack of thunder pulled his gaze back to the forest. Rain began pouring down from the sky. For some reason, worry began gnawing at his gut. A worry that only intensified when Garion returned with an armload of firewood, alone.

"Where's Granger?"  
"Who?" Garion asked in confusion as he set the wood down.

Draco ground his teeth as he said her name. "Hermione."  
"She was right behind me. We started to run when the rain began to fall," Garion said as he tried to wring out his tunic.

The wizard turned to look out into the rain. It was getting dark fast and there was no sign of Granger. He turned back and saw that the others were still hovering over Potter. That meant it was up to him. It was his turn to be the hero.

"I need to find Granger," Draco said as he set Flute down. "I'll be back."  
She just smiled knowingly as he vanished into the forest.


	5. Stormy Weather

Hello everyone! Sorry that it's been so long since I've updated. I've been busy and I've had little time to write. I'm afraid it will be at least two weeks before I update again. Sorry.

Holli, Steve-0, SilverKnight7, alicia, Rojeth, thank you guys so much for all of your reviews. They really mean a lot!

Mountain King, everyone has a reason to be there. You'll see why eventually. 

Lisette, I'm glad you're enjoying the characters you don't know. David Eddings has this amazing ability to create fabulous characters that each have their own quirks and nuances about them. I only hope I'm doing them justice.

Pandoras Box1, I'm actually going for three pairings. One should be fairly obvious by this chapter.

Anonymous, Aragorn does have Elvish blood in him through his Numenor blood. The Numenors are the descendants from Elrond's brother's side. (They are both half-elven). If you look in the books at the family trees you can clearly see it. In all actuality, Aragorn and Arwen are distant cousins. So yes, his long life comes through his Nemenorean blood, but that's because it has Elvish in it.

Thanks to my beta PuNKyCoWGiRL!

Chapter Four

Stormy Weather

Draco uselessly tried to peer into the forest around him, but the heavy storm clouds had blocked out the setting sun and the rain seemed to be coming down in solid sheets. "Granger!" He yelled, hoping she'd hear him and answer.

He had been searching for nearly half an hour and was so turned around that he had no clue where he was. If by some miracle he _did _find her, he wouldn't be able to get them back to the cave.

"Granger!" He tried again.

The lightening flashed, briefly illuminating the forest around him. He saw something just two feet to his right. It was her lying face down on the ground.

Draco rushed over and dropped to the ground next to her. Leaning in close, he gently rolled her over. In the faint light he could just make out the blood on her face.

Gently shaking her, he said, "Wake up, Granger. Come on, Hermione, wake up. If you die Potter will blame it all on me somehow. Come on, Hermione, you really need to wake up."  
Realizing that nothing he was doing would wake her up, he decided to change course. He remembered seeing an overhanging rock nearby so he picked up the young witch and carried her in that direction.

Draco stumbled through the forest with only the brief flashes of lightening to light the way. He discovered that the overhanging was actually a small cave that only went back about twenty feet. He headed to the back of the cave to prevent them from getting any wetter than they already were. The blond set her gently on the ground and tried to decide what to do next.

He knew that the bossy slayer said not to use magic, but he had no other way to start a fire or illuminate the cave to see how bad Granger was injured. Making up his mind he pulled out his wand and said, "Lumos!" And the cave was bathed in a faint, white light.

Propping his wand up on a rock so he had both hands free to work, he turned his attention to his companion's head. He couldn't tell how bad the cut was, so, with a grimace, he ripped off a strip of fabric from the bottom hem of his robe and tenderly wiped away the blood. He was relieved to see that the cut wasn't that deep and had already stopped bleeding, but he knew that she would have one hell of a headache when she woke up.

Knowing that they needed to get dry as soon as possible, he removed her robe, sweater, and tie, leaving only her shirt and skirt on. He quickly set about making a magical fire to dry their clothes and themselves by. 

As soon as he got it going, he took off his own sweater and robe and laid them next to the fire. He checked to make sure she was still unconscious then removed his shirt and began wringing it out. There was a sudden clap of thunder and she sat up screaming.

"Bloody hell, Granger! Will you stop that?" He sneered. But she continued screaming at the top of her lungs in sheer terror.

Not knowing what else to do, Draco dropped his shirt and ran over to her. He pulled her into his arms and she clung to him in desperation as she sobbed into his shoulder. She quickly cried herself into an uneasy sleep. He tried to disentangle himself, but every time he moved she whimpered and gripped him tighter. So he gave up and leaned back against the wall of the cave to think.

Draco honestly had no idea what had come over him, running out into a storm like that to rescue a girl he didn't even like. He just knew that that Flute girl had something to do with it, otherwise this would have never happened. He wasn't sure why it was so important for him to keep Granger alive. It's not like he would miss her if she was gone.

Hermione shifted slightly in his arms and he realized that she was snuggling with him. It only took him a moment longer to discover that he didn't mind it. In fact, it seemed rather...nice.

He stared down at her and observed that there was a softness about her that he had never noticed before. He had always thought of her as the ugly mudblood know-it-all, never as beautiful. While she still had a lot of hair, it had grown out and wasn't as bushy, and somewhere along the way, she had filled out nicely. The Slytherin was amazed to find that he found the Gryffindor girl beautiful. Attractive even.

A smirk crossed his face, though, as he imagined the look on her face when she woke up next to a half naked Malfoy in the morning.

*********

Harry awoke to see Aragorn's blurry face staring down at him.

"How are you feeling young Master Potter?" The man asked.

"My head hurts."  
"That is to be expected," Aragorn said gravely. "You had hit it pretty hard. Is your vision blurry?"

"Yeah, but that's probably because I don't have my glasses on."  
"Oh! Here they are," Dawn said, putting them in his hand.

"Thanks," he said. His vision cleared up as he put them on. "I can see fine."  
Aragorn looked relieved. "Then I believe we don't need to worry about a concussion." The man sat back on his heels allowing the boy to sit up.

The young wizard looked around and noticed that Garion was back and two people were missing. "Where are Hermione and Malfoy?"  
"Hermione and I got separated somehow when it began raining. Draco went looking for her," Garion answered.

"You let that slimy bastard look for her?" Harry yelled. "He'll kill her before saving her!"  
"No, he won't," Flute said from the front of the cave. "He'll take care of her," she said smugly.

"Aphrael, what are you up to?" Sparhawk asked.

"I'm not interfering if that's what you're implying," she said loftily, then turned her back to him.

Harry tried to stand. "I have to find her. She's scared of storms."  
"You'll only succeed in getting yourself lost of killed," Belgarath said irritably as he placed his hands on the boys shoulders, preventing him from getting up.

"He's right," Legolas said. "We cannot afford to lose anymore members of our company. We have no choice but to wait until the storm passes."  
Harry could only stare out the cave into the darkness with horror.


	6. Waking Up

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IMPORTANT: I received a review that I just had to comment about like this. Yes, this will be a Draco/Hermione pairing fic. If you don't like that then read no further. But do not tell me not to write it that way or tell me that it is wrong. That is just plain rude. You don't see me demanding you to write your fic a certain way now do you? This is my fic and I will write it any damn way I want to. Believe it or not, I don't write this fic for you, I write it because I have to, not because I want to. If this rant upsets you, well too bad. I can't spend my life pleasing others, I have my own life to worry about. My muse wants this to be a Draco/Hermione fic, and that's the way it will be. Oh, and those who criticize my choice again will just be ignored for you didn't have the courtesy to read my note.

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IMPORTANT 2: I have to suspend this fic for a short period of time, but I'm not abandoning it. I don't know if you guys know (those of you who are left after my above rant) that this is one of four WIP. Having that many fics going on at once is starting to stretch me a little thin. I have one that is close to being finished so I will finish it and then come back to this one. If you guys wish, I can start an update list to let you guys know when I pick this story back up. If you want to be on it, leave your email in the review or email me at melindoranightsilver@hotmail.com

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Review Responses:

Thorn of Blood, Holli, Andine, mac_c, thank you guys so much for your reviews!

NicolaAfyon, I'm ashamed to admit this, but I have Redemption on my bookshelf, but I haven't found enough time to devote to reading it. I know, crazy isn't it? But matchmaking is one of Aphrael's more endearing, and devious qualities.

Felecia Neko, You're welcome. The Elenium is actually my second favorite series, I like The Tamuli better (the one that follows it). As for Draco/Hermione, it will be a while before they get together. I never immediately put people together, it's not realistic (well as realistic as you can get with a story about magic, dimension crossing, childlike goddesses, etc.). I like for things to build naturally in relationships.

Pandoras Box1, you know me, I like to keep things interesting with my pairings. No pairing for Willow (at this point in time she's with Kennedy), but that just leaves the other two girls. I'm sure you could guess the other pairings, especially since Garion, Belgarath, and Sparhawk are not up for grabs (their wives are too mixed up with the prophecies for me to interfere. Not to mention Belgarath is seven thousand years old. Buffy likes older men, but that's kind of pushing it.)

Thanks to my beta, PuNKyCoWGiRL!

Chapter Five

Waking Up

Harry awoke almost as soon as the light touched the sky the next morning. He was extremely worried about what Malfoy may have done to Hermione if he had found her. He knew that the others didn't understand, they just didn't know Malfoy like he did.

As soon as it was light enough to see, he turned to Legolas, who had kept watch during the night. "Can we go now?"

"When the others awake," Legolas answered simply.

Harry let out a frustrated sigh.

"I understand your concerns for your friends, but you must trust to hope that she is well. It is what Aragorn and I must believe about our own missing friends."  
"You don't know that she is fine," Harry grumpily said.

"Not for certain, no. But I also do not believe that the goddess would have allowed him to search for her if his intentions were anything but good."  
Not trusting himself to speak, Harry just snorted derisively and stared at the sleeping people around them. He was hopping that they would feel the intensity of his glare and wake up. Thankfully, the men of the group began to stir, while the girls stayed in their blissful slumber.

"Can we at least wake them up?" He asked.

Legolas nodded and crossed to the three women, while Sparhawk moved to wake Flute. The elf gently shook Dawn and she mumbled, "Don't wanna go school today... Too tired."

He shook her again. 

"Buffy, I said..." Then she sat up with a gasp. "Oh, it wasn't a dream, was it?" She asked as she looked around the cave.

"No, it wasn't," Harry said tersely.

Seeing that she was firmly awake, Legolas moved to the redhead who woke up easily enough. As he turned to Buffy, Willow said, "I wouldn't do that if I were you."  
"But she needs to awake so we may search for Master Draco and Lady Hermione."  
"Ok," Willow said with a little laugh. "It's your funeral."  
Legolas gave her a puzzled look. "I do not see how my funeral would factor in to waking Lady Buffy."  
"You'll see why soon enough," Dawn said as she and Willow backed away.

The elf reached out to shake Buffy, but he had barely touched her when her hand quickly shot out and grabbed his wrist. She twisted so fast and hard that she nearly broke his arm as she threw him across the cave.

"She's called the slayer for a reason," Dawn explained to everyone as they stared at the tiny blond in surprise. "You know, lots of speed and strength."

"Indeed," Aragorn said softly as Buffy actually woke up.

She took in Legolas sitting on the ground next to the cave wall trying to catch his breath and she sighed. "Why didn't you stop him from trying to wake me up?" Buffy asked Dawn and Willow.

"Hey, we did the warning, not our fault he didn't do the heeding," Willow said defensively.

Buffy groaned as she looked up and saw that it was barely light outside. "I hate mornings," she grumbled. She stood up and stretched to get the kinks out from sleeping on the hard ground. "Yeah, really hate camping," she added. Speaking up, she asked, "When do we leave to do this rescuing?"

"As soon as we have something to eat," Belgarath said.

"Do we have to?" Harry asked, his voice lined with impatience.

"Yes, we do. We won't be much help to your friends if we pass out from hunger, now will we?" Belgarath asked dryly.

"Malfoy is not my friend," Harry said between clenched teeth. Then he turned and stalked to the front of the cave.

"Those two boys have some major issues," Buffy said.

"Like we've never had issues with each other at some point in time?" Willow asked.

"True, but they were never as bad as this."  
They ate a quick meal of berries and meat left over from the night before. Then they got down to the details of the rescue party.

"How are we supposed to find them?" Buffy asked.

"It may be quite difficult. The storm probably ruined any of the tracks they had left," Aragorn stated.

"There is another way," Flute said cryptically and they all turned to look at her. She looked at Garion and Belgarath. "It does require a bit of magic, but at this point I don't think we have much of a choice."  
The two sorcerers seemed to know what she meant and nodded to each other. Their forms shimmered and then two wolves were standing in front of them.

"I think some of us should stay behind in case they find their way back," Sparhawk said.

"I'm going," Harry said.

"I'm going with him," Dawn added. She looked at Buffy and practically dared her to say no.

"Fine. Willow and I can stay here," Buffy said.

"Flute and I will stay also," Sparhawk added.

"Legolas and I can forage some more," Aragorn informed them before slipping into the forest.

Feeling slightly foolish, Harry looked at the two wolves and asked, "Can you find their trail?"  
"One finds the trail rather faint," Garion said to his grandfather in the way of the wolves.

"Yes, but we should have no problem following it."  
With their noses to the ground the two wolves started off, leaving Harry and Dawn running to catch up.

*********

Draco woke up as Hermione shifted in his arms. He looked out the opening of the cave to see that the storm had passed leaving only a slight drizzle and the sky was still slightly grey.

He hoped that the others were out looking for them because he knew that there was no way he could get back to them. Draco gently nudged the sleeping girl.

Hermione moaned in pain as her eyes fluttered open and her hand went up to her forehead. She was surprised to find that she was snuggled up to somebody. As she concentrated a little harder, she realized that it was a half-naked _male_ somebody. 

She sat up and the world began to swim in front of her eyes. When it came back into focus she gasped and scuttled back. "Malfoy. What happened?"

"You must have got knocked in the head by a falling branch. That stupid king didn't make sure that you stayed with him."  
"It's not his fault," she mumbled. "I told him to go ahead and not wait for me. That I'd be fine."

Draco just rolled his eyes.

"And why are you with me and not Harry?"

"When king-boy came back without you, Potter had already been injured by his own clumsiness while they had searched the cave. The only one not doing anything was me, so I got elected to find you."  
Hermione wrapped her arms around her middle. "I'm surprised you put forth any sort of effort to find me."  
"Granger, despite what you think, I'm not that bad of a guy," he said as he stood and crossed over to her.

"What are you doing?" She asked, a tinge of fear in her voice.

He spoke slowly as if he was explaining it to a small child. "Your head. I need to check your wound. Make sure its fine and not infected."  
"Why would you want to do that? I thought you hated me."  
"Yeah, well, people think a lot of things about me," he said as he unwrapped the cloth strip from around her head.

She could only stare at him in surprise at the gentle way he checked her head. This was not the typical behavior she had come to expect from the harsh boy.

After a few moments he seemed satisfied and walked over to where their robes were lying on the ground.

Hermione couldn't help it, but her eyes drifted over his naked torso. She couldn't stop the flutter in her tummy as she noticed how toned the young Malfoy heir was. At the same time she felt disgusted with herself for finding him attractive.

He ripped another piece of fabric off his robe and walked back to her.

"Ummm... Why were we..." Then she gestured to the area where they had been lying together.

Draco frowned slightly. "You were screaming your bloody head off. The only way to shut you up was to hold you. Then you wouldn't let go."  
She nodded. Even in her sleep her body must have been reacting to her fear of storms. It was not something she wanted one of her biggest enemies to know about so she didn't say anything else.

After securing her bandage, he went back to their now dry clothes and put his shirt on.

"Do you think they're looking for us?" She asked after a few uncomfortable minutes.

"I bloody well hope so because I got turned around during my search for you."  
She just sighed and looked out the cave's mouth and into the quiet forest.


End file.
